Unintentional injuries among older adults in the capital region of Iceland in 2011-2012. A retrospective observational incidence study

• Main Author: María Guðnadóttir 1990-
• Other Authors: Háskóli Íslands
• Format: Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: 2015
• Subjects: Lýðheilsuvísindi; Iceland
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1946/23282

Background: Previous studies have found that unintentional injuries represent a common public health problem for older adults and that the incidence of injuries increases with age. Unintentional injuries can have a substantial impact on the lives of older adults and may result in both physical and psychological consequences. In Iceland there is a lack of epidemiological studies on the incidence and risk factors of injuries among older adults. Objective: To investigate the yearly frequency of injuries at the emergency department of Landspitali University Hospital (LUH) among adults 67 years and older, along with risk factors such as gender and age as well as causes and consequences of injuries. Methods: The primary data source of the study was arrivals of adults 67 and older living in the capital region in Iceland, to the emergency department of LUH, in the years 2011 and 2012. Data on injuries was obtained from registries at Landspitali University Hospital, the Nordic Medico-Statistical Committee (NOMESCO) database and the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) coding systems. To assess the differences between groups a chi-square test was used for categorical data. Poisson regression was used to assess the accident rate with regard to age and gender as well as the differences in accident rate between the years 2011-2012. Results: There were a total of 4,469 visits among adults 67 years and older to the emergency department of LUH in the study period. The yearly incidence rate for injuries was 106 per 1,000 population. Injury rates increased with age (test for linear trend p<0.001) and were highest in the age group 90 years and older (193 per 1,000 inhabitants ≥ 90 years old). Injury rates per 1,000 women were higher than those per 1,000 men in all the age groups (RR = 1.19, 95% CI 1.11-1.26; p<0.001). The most frequent place of occurrence was in or around homes (3,283/4,469; 73%). Falls were the reason for most injuries (3,302/4,469; 74%) among both women (2,207/2,776; 80%) and men (1,095/1,693; ...